Introducing an rbcL and a trnL reference library to aid in the metabarcoding analysis of foraged plants from two semi-arid eastern South African savanna bioregions.

ABSTRACT: Success of a metabarcoding study is determined by the extent of taxonomic coverage and the quality of records available in the DNA barcode reference database used. This study aimed to create an rbcL and a trnL (UAA) DNA barcode sequence reference database of plant species that are potential herbivore foraging targets and commonly found in semi-arid savannas of eastern South Africa. An area-specific species list of 765 species was compiled according to plant collection records available and areas comparable to an eastern semi-arid South African savanna. Thereafter, rbcL and trnL sequences of species from this list were mined from GenBank and BOLD sequence databases according to specific quality criteria to ensure accurate taxonomic coverage and resolution. These were supplemented with seque

SUBMITTER: Botha D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10198553 | biostudies-literature | 2023

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature